Monday, 6 December 2010

Palingates Weekly Roundup - November 29 to December 6

Leadfoot_LA and Bella have spared us again from watching “Alaska’s Sarah Palin.” This week’s episode shows the Palin’s family dysfunction in all its glory, while fishing for salmon on Bristol Bay, celebrating Willow’s 16th birthday with rude antics, and visiting a Palin nephew with Down Syndrome (obviously they are very close and Palin really cares about him, as it only took 10 years for her to meet this boy for the first time). Track appears long enough for us to find out that the Army did not straighten him out; he appears to be lazy, irresponsible and undisciplined, and he still has the bad temper for which he was well-known in his hockey days. The fishing expedition shows that the Palin kids know nothing about properly and skillfully handling boats, trailers, fish or fishing equipment. At Willow’s party, she makes faces while others are praying, smashes Piper’s face into the cake and then whines because she did not get a new truck even though she is such a great kid – OMG! Piper is unhelpful and disrespectful. Once again, the Palins put the fun (or at least the FU) in dysfunction.

Austintxx has done it again! This time, he coughed up the dough for Sarah’s latest screed, and then stood in line with some dyed-in-the-polyester Palinbots, photographed a C4Per, and then got the full charm treatment from Sarah herself. Fortunately, Palingates had inoculated him so that he didn’t fall under her spell! Great music, lots of fun – thanks, Austin! Patrick added some choice pieces, including the Morning Joe interview where Scarborough challenges the Republicans to “man up” and expresses his outrage that she took the names of Reagan and Bush the First in vain. He adds some excellent links on Sarah’s call to hunt down Assange of Wikileaks as though he were a terrorist rather than a whistle-blower; here are excerpts from the Guardian:

Insofar as they are sensational, it is in showing the corruption and mendacity of those in power, and the mismatch between what they claim and what they do…The job of the media is not to protect power from embarrassment…American (and British) taxpayers might question, too, how most of the billions of dollars going in aid to Afghanistan simply exits the country at Kabul airport… America's foreign policy is revealed as a slave to rightwing drift… Perhaps we can now see how catastrophe unfolds when there is time to avert it, rather than having to await a Chilcot report after the event. If that is not in the public's interest, I fail to see what is.

Palingates had a banner month in November, driven by the huge numbers of readers coming to the site for Patrick’s worldwide scoop of Palin’s new book. That post generated more MSM coverage than ever before, opening the door for more people to become aware of Sarah Palin’s many scandals. None is more audacious than her faked pregnancy with Trig. As the clip of Michael Carey proves, this “rumor” was not a fabrication of the blogs after her nomination; it was widely discussed and given credence in Anchorage months before Palin’s selection as the VP candidate (proof in itself of the complete lack of vetting by the McCain campaign).

Now, if page loads were dollars, Palingates would be in fine financial fettle! But as it is, PG runs on a shoestring budget; to stay afloat, the blog relies on the incredible donations of time and expertise by Patrick, Kathleen and the research team, as well as our readers’ generous gifts of knowledge, wit and funds. So, please give as generously as you can afford for this money blast. Special thanks to drpatois, who has pledged to match donations up to $365 – how wonderful! I hope others will join me in meeting her match offer.

SP is a PP: a personable person with a psychopathic personality who has no conscience. [BBT: I think she is a PP*.] Kathleen’s guest post offers a literary interlude, as she connects the writings of Kurt Vonnegut and his description of PPs to our very own former half-term governor, who oozes charm as a front for a very dysfunctional, authoritarian personality. Vonnegut’s experiences as a POW in Dresden during the bombing that destroyed the city, along with his secular-humanist foundation, made him the antithesis of Sarah’s superficial smiling über-patriotism and ultimately dark, ruthless persona.

Palinman brings new meaning to Palinmania! After watching the clip of her with Palinman, signing books while not even looking at them, I can’t help but think of how personally meaningful the signatures on Sarah’s books are. (Maybe the autopen is not such a bad option after all.) The crazy doesn’t end there, as we see a sampling of Palinbots and get a glimpse of the upcoming SPAK episode with Sarah and Kate plus nine (or thereabouts). On a more serious note, Frank Schaeffer will have a new book this spring, this one saying boldy that sex is the underlying theme of selling evangelical Christianity. This is where Sarah fits in, and it should be interesting! [Schaeffer is also the author of this brilliant article from September 2008 on “Sarah Palin, America’s Lipstick Fascist” (H/T to juicyfruityy).] The post notes the void that Alaska Dispatch is helping to fill in news reporting, the efforts of CNN to penetrate Palin’s media blockade, and the forceful article by Kathleen Kennedy Townsend refuting Palin’s critique of JFK’s famous statements about separating politics and religion.

Patrick has figured out Sarah’s Palin’s first amendment/commandment: "Any criticism of a Palin will be considered as an attack on American values and the constitution and has to be repulsed by any means necessary swiftly and forcefully." As he points out, “We already knew that Sarah Palin was a professional victim, but what we didn't know so far is that her little apprentice Bristol is quickly following in her footsteps...” Margaret Cho and Keith Olbermann had the audacity to comment on Bristol without the Palins’ approval; utterly unacceptable! So, ghostwriter to the rescue! It is hilarious to compare these Facebook responses to the actual comments that Bristol made on Facebook and MySpace. "Accusing me of hypocrisy is by now, an old canard. What Mr Olbermann lacks in originality he makes up for with insencere incredulity" and "hey, hahaha i went and shoot a tree!! i was so scared of the kick-back and the noise though..everyone has to help me and i was embarrassed. but anways how was your day?? tracks little bitch ass decited to tell my parents im a stoner..hes soo tight..and when i get home, im gonna kick him in the balls.." Do you notice any difference in style? Hint: you can tell which is Bristol’s actual writing because it is laced with profanity and lacks any semblance of knowledge of the English language. Sarah herself is on a Twittermania rant today. Joy to the World.

Comments of the Week

Dsmyre: …Sarah is a professional heckler with just one focus, Pres. O. She is paid to continue the role she played in 2008. She hurls insults, insinuates, implies, and raises hackles with outrageous tweets, speeches and Facebook posts. She is a pitbull with lipstick who purposely seeks to draw negative attention. She is a highly-paid shameless distraction.

Everspring: Hmmmm...I guess Palin will be banned from commenting on her own facebook pages because she doesn't follow any of her own rules (i.e., hateful comments, insanely stupid comments, opinions without facts, never discusses real issues -- only garbage, never respectful or kind comments, and always looking to cause some kind of turmoil) !!!

Ltl1 reposted an excellent IM comment from a Bristol Bay fisherman who noted the “total lack of skill” shown by the Palins in the way that they handled the salmon, and how odd it is that the Palin kids did not learn how to handle the boat, nets and fish at an early age.

And later (responding to Molly_WI’s comment about Sarah’s fake tears): You are not jaded; you are just perceptive:Oct 29, 2010, Trig has a scheduled surgery;Oct 30, 2010, Sarah goes to West Virginia to campaign for a teabagger;Oct 31, 2010, after fulfilling her campaigning obligation (which was scheduled after Trig's surgery was scheduled), Sarah rushes back to Alaska to be with Trig while he recovers from surgery Sarah goes to New York and watches a Jets game in the owner's luxury box. Her love for Trig turns off when the cameras turn off.

Missharleyquin: [It struck me as odd that] Mrs. Palin never made an effort to be a part of Matthew's life as soon as she found out that Trig was going to be born with Down Syndrome… Wouldn't it seem logical to call Ina and ask her about her experiences, to visit as time allowed so she could see what she had to look forward to and the challenges she and her family were going to face. Instead she gets all teary eyed seeing a ten year old relative she ignored for the last decade because it would look good for the sympathy voters.

Jack Slater: These names are all rabid, frothing at the mouth Neocons. They loathe Wikilieaks actions, not because of national security risks, but because of possibly exposing evidence of war crimes along with the loss of public support for their globetrotting imperialism.

Later: "The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are twenty gods, or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg." ~Thomas Jefferson, Notes on the State of Virginia 1781 - 1782

Femme7: Palin's knee jerk reaction to WikiLeaks Chief....hunt him down like a terrorist..........should be a wake-up call to all American's. This is scary, scary stuff. She believes that the USA should be able to go out and kill anyone we want.... because we don't like what they are doing? She believes we can just call anyone a terrorist and hunt them down? Wow.

MrsTBB had a great account from Sasha Obama’s teacher of Sasha’s behavior in school: “…amazingly kind, smart, unspoiled, mature for her age without being bratty, cooperative…”

SondraTompkins: She's already running in the delusional world in which she lives.

Later: "Leave no stone, lie, or book unturned." - Me ;-)

Cackling Rad: Oh, she's definitely running. She wants to beat that black man so badly she's frothing at the mouth. She knows she can't win by running a typical campaign, but that's okay with her because she is running a brilliant NEW style of campaign in which the presidency is treated like the Miss Congeniality title, something you win by being all fakey-popular… Plus, these are dangerous, desperate times, and she is brilliant at tapping into people's fears and angers. The only thing that might trip her up is that, as much as she knows and understands people who are like her, she is terribly ignorant of how the rest of us think…

Later: People are angry. Angry people want someone to blame and hate. This is why she's become so popular--she's the cheerleader of hate.

AKRNC: Facebook friends within the last 28 hours have increased by 27,014 for our President, Barack Obama for a total of 16,906,803. For 1/2 term Quitter they have increased by 3891 for a total of 2,486,745.

Anne_123: Perhaps I am wrong, but I have never ever seen one famous celebrity drag his/her child with them while they signed autographs or met "fans'. They keep the "little ones" out of that mess… Anne also found this comment on derelictgunslinger.com: “I can’t decide if the former Alaskan Governor is a Jezebel, Delilah or Typhoid Mary of American politics. Maybe she is a combination of all three…”

Linda1961: Reminder Gaters: 55 years ago today, a lady refused to give up her seat on a bus and was arrested. Thanks to Rosa Parks, a real American hero, we really are more free as a nation. Still far from perfect, but moving forward (for the most part). All it takes is ordinary people taking a stand.

To which sjk replied: and just over 2 years ago a cowardly VP candidate threw her daughter UNDER the bus to save her career. $arah is the opposite of Ms. Parks in every way possible, except possibly gender.

Former Republican: That's why the show is called "Sarah Palin's Killin' Alaska." (Isn't it?) Something dies a violent death in every flippin' episode. Salmon, halibut, caribou, our eardrums, and whatnot.

Cheeriogirl and her cohorts were at it again, researching connections of the consultants that SarahPAC lists on the FEC report. Great job!

Ivyfree: Off topic, kind of: I was readying a patient for surgery this morning. Heard the patient in the next cubicle: "You kick the L out of Palin and she's STILL a pain!" I lost it.

Lilybart: She is a quitter and a whiner. Americans don't like quitters and whiners. That might be all we need to end her.

Mytilla had a good comment on being the daughter of a dysfunctional mother (paying attention, Bristol?): I was well into my thirties before I finally broke free and am stunned at how sweet life is without all those planted doubts, contradictions, chaos, and uncertainty.

Cheeriogirl: Bristol wouldn't know the word "incredulity" if it smacked her upside the head. I call BS!

Ice_nine: True terror is to wake up one morning and discover that your high school class is running the country. -- Kurt Vonnegut

MadamDeal: 2012: True terror is to wake up one morning and discover that Sarah Palin and her high school class are running the country.

MaeLewis: There is one word of consolation today. In her recent TV interview, (played on Chris Matthews) Nicole Wallace said that she knew things about Palin. She knew that Palin was not qualified to be Vice President, and she said that if Sarah got anywhere close to getting the nomination, or God forbid, was the nominee, then she would have to tell what she knows.

Kellygrrrl: The smaller the mind the greater the conceit. – Aesop

Sickntiredofpalin: “Perseverance is a great element of success. If you only knock long enough and loud enough at the gate, you are sure to wake up somebody.” - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

ArmchairJane: And of course any day that I hear that Dick Cheney is getting indicted is a good day!

CR46: CANARD Definition from the TeagBagger dictionary: Canard A large divot or dent, usually found on the front of the refrigerator from a Can that missed a spouse, derived from the Teabagger slang of "Can hard"

BadlandsAK (from a longer comment): Maybe someone should put a copy of "Slaughter House Five" in the Christmas stockings of those who would glorify war.

Sallyngarland,tx: Palin has a psychotic need to stay in the news or be noticed. She did 4 tweets 2 hours ago. She reminds me of the Fatal Attraction stalker.

Molly malone: Wow. A blog that started out to solve a mystery: did Sarah Palin lie about her pregnancy and giving birth to Trig, or was she telling the truth? Aided by the efforts of citizen investigators, researchers, private witnesses and dogged sleuths, more pieces of the puzzle begin to emerge and fitted into place to present a picture more damning than even remotely suspected. To me, who loves mysteries, the even greater power of palingates lies in the fact that all commenters here--regardless of state, country, religious or political persuasion--have worked together to provide and analyze those puzzle pieces. And the most powerful thing I have learned is that, while S.P. tries to create hatred of others, the palingates family is the exact opposite. We have learned to care about commenters we would never have had the opportunity to know had it not been for palingates.

Cheeriogirl: You nailed it Molly. Palingates began as a blog, and has blossomed into so much more- a loving, caring community that spans across our globe. How amazing is that?

Later: She's the Cheerleader of Hate. If you tweet, please use this hashtag #CheerleaderofHate. I've gotten TREMENDOUS positive response whenever I include it in my tweets. Funny thing is, so far anyway, no one has asked me WHO I'm talking about- they already know. Rather telling, no?

Zane1: Teen pregnancy, vandalism & drugs...these are all red flags that no parenting is being done & the kids are looking for attention elsewhere. This is no all American Family.

Heidi1 had some interesting news: I'd love to share some great news that happened today. Guess who sent me an e-mail? The National Enquirer!...

Disqusux: "Alaskans eat, therefore we send Levi or Bristol out for Crunchwrap Supremes."

CaliGirl22 (from politicususa): Palin bought books with donor money, jacked up the value of the books four fold, and then sold them back to the same people who paid for the books in the first place. $64,000 in books may not seem like much, but when you consider that she paid the wholesale not the retail price for each copy it adds up quickly. If we estimate that SarahPAC paid $ 5 per book, Palin padded her sales with an additional 13,600 books."

Sunnyjane:@sarahpalinusa: Call out Kyl for refudiating Reagan's START treaty and putting U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan in harm's way! DO IT NOW!@sarahpalinusa: Wikileaks did NOT commit treason, you moron! A member of the MILITARY from red-state OKLAHOMA leaked confidential docs!@sarahpalinusa: You and Bristol were critical of Levi for chasing fame; how do you explain fame-whore Bristol? All Palins are HYPOCRITES!@sarahpalinusa: You’ve really made influential friends in 2010, Sarah. C. O’Donnell would vote for H. Clinton before she’d vote for you!

WheresMyJammies: @wheresmyjammies Here's my compromise. No social safety nets for people who support & vote GOP. They need to take responsibility for their votes. #p2

Get A Life:@sarahpalinusa couldn't even keep a college kid out of her yahoo e-mail, he guessed her password. How would she stop Wikileaks? #p2 #palin@sarahpalinusa Where's your tweet about expiring unemployment benefits? I thought you cared about the little people? #palin #p2@sarahpalinusa Tweets lies about "Tax Hike" but nothing about those losing unemployment benefits. R the unemployed not "real" Americans? #p2@sarahpalinusa "If you want to be taken seriously, be serious." Ed Rollins http://tinyurl.com/28syqc6 Another Republican blasts Palin #p2

GrannyJ: "This is a life-changing experience for all of us, and investigative citizen's blogging will never be the same again." I have believed this for a long time now. This is truly an amazing site. I tell my friends that one day the Palingates story will be made into a movie showing the power and potential of a community of bloggers committed to a common purpose. Hats off to Regina, Kathleen, Patrick and to all the investigative citizen journalists. You are awesome.

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